The teachers who were illegally recruited as a result of the JBT scam should not be allowed to remain in job, a Delhi court said while handing down ten-year imprisonment to former Haryana Chief Minister Om Prakash Chautala, his son Ajay Chautala and eight others.

Citing a Himachal Pradesh High Court judgement on a similar issue where favoured candidates were held to be co-conspirators, Special CBI Judge Vinod Kumar said "such candidates (in JBT scam) should not be allowed to remain in job."

The court also directed CBI to start a probe in respect of the selections of teachers under Directorate of Secondary Education, which happened during the same time as the JBT scam, and had come up in the writ petition filed in the Supreme Court by convicted IAS officer Sanjiv Kumar.

The court made the observations while referring to the arguments forwarded by counsel for Chautalas and Sher Singh Badshami as to why the candidates, who reaped the benefit of the scam, are still in job.

"I fully agree with their submissions. During the investigation as well as during this trial, it has very clearly come on record that the favoured candidates were given 17 or more than 17 marks in interviews. Therefore, such candidates, who have been favoured, have adopted unfair means for getting their selections.

"Regarding the remaining, it would be appropriate if the district-wise merit list on the basis of the Supreme Court list is prepared (the original list)," the court said.

"I mention that as per rule 11 issued by the Directorate Primary Education..., it was directed that the district-level selection committees would prepare the merit list after conclusion of interviews, which would be sent to Directorate Education.

"The vacancies of each districts should be filled up on the basis of district-wise merit list. Where the Supreme Court list is not available...such merit list should be prepared purely on the basis of the academic marks etc. or interviews should be held afresh," the judge said.

The court, however, clarified that drawing up of fresh merit lists was "only a suggestion to the government and not a direction."

The judge also noted "I would further like to add here that Deputy Commissioner and the SDMs etc. had actively compelled the chairperson and the members of the district-level selection committees to sign affidavits on a pre-prepared proforma."

"This is a serious matter because these affidavits were being taken for the purpose of filing